Digital Access as a Prerequisite for Financial Access: Digital Access as a Prerequisite for Financial Access

The U.S. Faster Payments Council Financial Inclusion Work Group (FIWG) has researched and conducted interviews examining how access to technology creates barriers to the use of financial services. The FIWG explored how technology access, digital literacy, infrastructure, and user experience shape financial inclusion, especially for vulnerable populations. This blog summarizes the findings based on the research questions and provides insights into how access to technology can help shape an improved user experience and engagement in financial services.

Why Connectivity Matters

Financial services increasingly depend on access to digital infrastructure. Without reliable broadband, modern devices, or digital literacy, individuals cannot participate fully in the modern economy. This is not only an equity issue affecting seniors, students, rural residents, and low-income populations, but it is also a resilience issue. When disasters strike, a lack of connectivity can block the delivery of aid, delay recovery, and deepen inequities.[1]

Access to financial services is now inseparable from access to digital infrastructure. Digital payments, online banking, and many government disbursements depend on reliable internet connectivity and compatible devices. Yet millions remain unconnected or under-connected, and when broadband is unavailable—or fails entirely—financial exclusion deepens.

Rural and low-income households often rely on patchwork connectivity, while urban emergencies reveal how quickly digital gaps become financial ones. Field research from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Government Accountability Office (GAO) confirms this reality: in the aftermath of events such as natural disasters and pandemics (e.g., Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020), individuals without adequate devices or digital literacy were unable to access critical digital disbursements, even when funds were available. GAO research highlights that the “digital last mile” remains the weakest link in the financial access chain; approximately 9 million eligible individuals faced significant hurdles in receiving pandemic stimulus payments due to a lack of internet access or the digital tools required for registration.[2]^,[3]

Access alone, however, does not equal capability. Seniors may own smartphones but lack the confidence to use mobile banking securely. Rural communities may have basic mobile coverage yet lack the stable broadband needed to transmit or receive richer data and fully participate in modern financial services. Small businesses in low-bandwidth zones face higher costs and slower adoption of digital invoicing or instant payments. True inclusion requires education, intuitive design, and human support. Programs using train-the-trainer models and gamified learning have proven effective at converting access into adoption and building trust in digital finance.

Institutional and User Experience Challenges

Community financial institutions face structural barriers of their own. Legacy systems often do not support 24/7 processing or meet ISO 20022 compliance standards, limiting their ability to participate fully in instant payment systems. These constraints are not the result of unwillingness, but rather the consequence of technical debt and competing investment priorities.

While fintechs innovate and move to market quickly, they often lack the deep trust, local presence, and focused reach that community banks provide. Modernizing core infrastructure enables these institutions to deliver instant payments, strengthen compliance, and sustain financial inclusion across the communities they serve. At the same time, consumers continue to experience inconsistency across payment journeys, further underscoring the need for aligned infrastructure and user experiences across the ecosystem.

Some fintechs offer seamless, embedded payment journeys, while others require multiple logins, redirects, or disconnected steps. Even when a fintech experience is well-designed, it often differs markedly from the experience users have with their trusted financial institution. This lack of alignment results in fragmented payment journeys that slow adoption and erode trust—particularly for users with low digital literacy. Harmonized APIs and standardized user experiences can close this fragmentation gap, making payments feel universally intuitive, fast, secure, and frictionless.[4]

Building Trust, Security and Resilience

Equity and resilience are deeply interconnected. During times of crisis, digital inequity can determine whether individuals gain timely access to critical funds or are left excluded. Malaysia’s national payments harmonization efforts and the European Union’s Digital Decade demonstrate how coordinated strategies across broadband access and payment infrastructure can meaningfully bridge these gaps and promote inclusive financial participation.

The U.S. is moving in this direction through programs like FCC Broadband for All and NTIA digital equity grants. Financial institutions can extend this vision by maintaining hybrid options—cash plus digital—and by partnering with civic organizations for trust and adoption. Trust itself anchors inclusion. Many communities prefer receiving funds through local civic or faith-based organizations. Yet large-scale digital disbursement programs, such as those during COVID-19, revealed fraud rates exceeding 80 percent in early phases.[5] The lesson is clear: pre-disaster pilots, layered verification, restricted-use cards, and continuous education are vital. 

Security must be both designed and taught. Best practices emphasize trusted intermediaries, infrastructure investment, education, proactive planning, and treating internet access as a utility. Trusted local partners translate technology into dignity and speed. Infrastructure investment strengthens not only payments but also education and local economies. Education ensures users understand and trust digital tools. Proactive planning—such as preloading funds or testing rails—reduces chaos during crisis. Viewing connectivity as a utility reframes digital and financial equity.

Looking Ahead: The Future of Inclusion

The next decade of digital inclusion will be shaped by the maturity of instant payment systems like the FedNow® Service and RTP® network, by embedded finance that makes payments invisible, and by emerging offline and device-to-device capabilities ensuring continuity during outages. Trusted digital identities and improved data sets under ISO 20022 will make access safer and smarter. Financial inclusion cannot exist without digital inclusion.

Research from the 2023 Atlanta Fed SCOPI Report[6] and the FPC’s 2025 Digital Assets & DLT Report[7] provides a roadmap for shifting from digital access to financial inclusion. This translates those insights into practical steps for both providers and users—because progress requires action at every level.

For Providers and Policy Makers

• Lower Onboarding Barriers: Adopt Tiered KYC and Universal Applications to simplify the path for those with limited documentation or digital confidence.
• Embrace the "Next Frontier": Explore how Stablecoins and Digital Ledger Technology (DLT) can provide "instant liquidity" for the underserved—potentially bypassing the constraints of traditional accounts entirely.

• Empower Through Literacy: Users should be encouraged to utilize instant-ready accounts and real-time balance notifications to avoid predatory fees and better manage tight budgets.
• Secure Digital Identities: Moving toward trusted, portable digital identities reduces the fragmented "redirect fatigue" that currently erodes trust for low-literacy users.